| What the panelists liked: Upbeat and positive tone Active verbs Touches all senses Creates mood Establishes setting Opens with action Voice that drew the reader in Great humor Charming Opens with an emotional center Sentences have cadence Rich images Beautifully written Engaging Succinct Unique phrases Supercharged Suspenseful Connected to character Want to find out more about the character Clever opening Ominous opening Great first lines | What the panelists disliked: Nothing unique Typos Redundant language Too dense with description Does not open with a character doing something Opens with a prologue No orientation--don't know where we are, where we're going, or what is happening, confusing Too much telling The main character is not named, though his horse is Begins with back-story without "earning" the "right" for it Uses three words in a sentence when only one is needed Reads like an essay Stock opening, with the character waking up Unneeded information about setting, not enough about the character Too many unneeded words--it, the, at, an… Too cryptic Too many names Passive construction Passive voice Paragraphs too long Sentences need punch Over the top emotion--"My heart began bravely beating." Clichés--phrases with no energy, nothing new |
Every year, since it began in beautiful Charlottesville, Virginia, I have attended the Virginia Festival of the Book--a five-day literary event that gathers authors, agents, publishers, and other professionals from across all genres. Most of the events are free and open to the public. Each one has proven to be a great learning experience, a reason to laugh my socks off, and motivation to keep on writing!
This year, I enjoyed three events: The Agents Roundtable, A First Pages Panel, and a literary conversation with Lois Lowry. (WOW!)
Thought I'd share my notes from the first pages' panel.
EVENT NAME: Off to a Good Start: How to Hook an Editor on the First Page
WHEN: Saturday, March 22nd, 2014
WHO PARTICIPATED: Writers Jennifer Elvgren, Deborah Prum, Fran Slayton, and Andy Straka.
WHAT: After Fran Slayton read aloud the first 100-words from manuscripts submitted by the public, either via email before the event or by hand during the event, panelists discussed what did and did not work for them.
FROM MY NOTES:
This year, I enjoyed three events: The Agents Roundtable, A First Pages Panel, and a literary conversation with Lois Lowry. (WOW!)
Thought I'd share my notes from the first pages' panel.
EVENT NAME: Off to a Good Start: How to Hook an Editor on the First Page
WHEN: Saturday, March 22nd, 2014
WHO PARTICIPATED: Writers Jennifer Elvgren, Deborah Prum, Fran Slayton, and Andy Straka.
WHAT: After Fran Slayton read aloud the first 100-words from manuscripts submitted by the public, either via email before the event or by hand during the event, panelists discussed what did and did not work for them.
FROM MY NOTES:
